NASCAR announced today the launch of “NASCAR Unites – An American Salute,” a patriotic initiative uniting the NASCAR industry and fans this summer to celebrate America and support U.S. military families.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR announced today the launch of “NASCAR Unites – An American Salute,” a patriotic initiative uniting the NASCAR industry and fans this summer to celebrate America and support U.S. military families.

NASCAR Nation will be covered from head to toe – and from splitter to spoiler – in red, white and blue to highlight the summer season, starting and ending at two traditionally patriotic summer NASCAR events held at Charlotte Motor Speedway (Memorial Day Weekend, May 26-27) and the Coke Zero 400 Weekend Powered By Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway (Independence Day Weekend, July 5-7). Additional activities related to the six-week initiative will take place between these “tent-pole” events, including retail programs and other sponsor promotions.

To launch the initiative, the “NASCAR Unites – An American Salute” paint scheme for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 88 National Guard Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was revealed today in the nation’s capital for more than 30,000 children and their guests attending the 134th Annual Easter Egg Roll event at the White House.

“The entire NASCAR community has a long history of recognizing the efforts of the men and women who serve in our country’s military,” said NASCAR President Mike Helton. “With this effort, we continue to rally the NASCAR industry to collectively express our gratitude to those who serve our country and their families. This program will reinforce our sport’s commitment to honoring the United States Military while also raising funds to help support military families.”

Teams in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, along with their partners and sponsors, will showcase support for the program in their own individual ways, from displaying the customized logo on their cars and trucks to developing red, white and blue paint schemes. In addition, NASCAR has provided teams with the option of running a specially designed, patriotic-themed package that would incorporate the spoiler as well as other areas of the car. Additional activities related to the platform will include retail programs and other sponsor promotions to be announced in the weeks leading into the Charlotte event weekend.

“I’m thrilled to be part of a sport that does so much to support the military and their families,” said Edwards. “It’s an honor to support “NASCAR Unites – An American Salute,” and display the red, white and blue on the Fastenal car. I know all my partners and team look forward to showing appreciation for those who serve our country.”

As part of the program, NASCAR and The NASCAR Foundation will work with charities to fund initiatives that support military families. A social media promotion utilizing a #NASCARUnites hashtag will highlight track activations as well as patriotic activities from teams, broadcast partners and sponsors.

About NASCAR UnitesNASCAR Unites brings the passion and power of an entire sport together to make the world we live in a better place. This industry-wide initiative creates an opportunity for NASCAR fans, drivers, teams, tracks, sponsors and more to unite to improve the lives of those in need across the nation through volunteering, raising awareness and utilizing the assets of the sport to make a difference. For more information, visit NASCAR.COM/Unites. Follow NASCAR Unites on Facebook.com/NASCARUnites or on Twitter: @NASCARUnites.

About NASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for one of North America's premier sports. NASCAR races are broadcast in more than 150 countries and in 20 languages. In the U.S., races are broadcast on FOX, TNT, ABC/ESPN/ESPN2, SPEED and SiriusXM Satellite Radio. NASCAR fans are among the most brand loyal in all of sports, and as a result more Fortune 500 companies participate in NASCAR than any other sport. NASCAR consists of three national series (the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series), four regional series, and one local grassroots series, as well as two international series. Also part of NASCAR is GRAND-AM Road Racing, known for its competition on road courses with multiple classes of cars. NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races at 100 tracks in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada and Mexico. Based in Daytona Beach, Fla., NASCAR has offices in eight cities across North America. The next NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, the 16th Annual Samsung Mobile 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, will air April 14th on FOX at 7:30 p.m. ET. For more information and a complete schedule, visit www.nascar.com. Follow NASCAR on www.facebook.com/NASCAR or on Twitter: @NASCAR.